May 6, 2009 (CIDRAP News) –The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today announced approval of a new influenza vaccine manufacturing facility in Pennsylvania that could be used to produce a vaccine against the novel influenza H1N1 (swine flu) virus. The Sweetwater, Pa., facility is owned and operated by Sanofi Pasteur, which is already the nation’s largest seasonal flu vaccine producer and manufactures the only prepandemic H5N1 avian influenza vaccine for the nation’s Strategic National Stockpile. Officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have said that they are working on a seed strain for a vaccine against the novel H1N1 influenza virus. If pilot trials and production go smoothly, the nation could have a vaccine against the new influenza strain this fall. However, they also said that the decision about whether to use the vaccine would be made separately. Jesse Goodman, MD, MPH, the FDA’s acting chief scientist and deputy commissioner for scientific and medical programs, said in a press release today that increased capacity for influenza vaccines is critical for pandemic preparedness as well as seasonal influenza. “Thanks to strategic investments by the federal government and proactive efforts and engagement by the FDA and the vaccine industry, our nation’s preparedness has come a long way over the last 5 years,” he said. In 2007 the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) awarded Sanofi a $77.4 million grant to retrofit existing vaccine production facilities and keep them ready for 2 years to produce pandemic flu vaccines, with an option to extend the time to 5 years, according to previous reports. Sanofi had said it hoped to complete the retrofitting by late 2010. The company contributed $25 million toward there novation of its existing plant. Jun 20, 2007, CIDRAP News story “Flu vaccine makers get HHS funds to prepare for pandemic” May 6 FDA news release
Sanofi will use the new facility to make Fluzone, the company’s egg-based influenza vaccine. It completed construction of the new $150 million, 140,000-square-foot plant injury 2007 and said it had hoped to bring the facility online by late 2008 or early 2009, according to a company press release in 2007. Construction of Sanofi’s new facility was designed to add capacity for 100 million doses of seasonal flu vaccine each year, while the renovation was expected to add production capacity of about 50 million doses each year. When the HHS awarded the contract to Sanofi, it also awarded a similar retrofitting contract for $55.1million to MedImmune, Inc. The department’s goal in boosting capacity at the two plants was to allow them to produce 100 million doses of a pandemic vaccine within 6 months of the start of a pandemic. See also: Jul 20, 2007, Sanofi press release
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Foreign investment falls as COVID-19 pandemic hits major investors
“If the COVID-19 pandemic drags on to June or July, I have to be honest that we would have to revise even the Rp 817 trillion investment projection,” Bahlil said in an online briefing on Monday. “But in the third and fourth quarters, investment is expected to offset our deficit in the next three months.”The unfolding COVID-19 pandemic is obstructing the government’s plan to spur investment. Last year, the country managed to attract Rp 809 trillion of investment, slightly above the target.On the upside, the agency has yet to report any pullouts from investors. Instead, some investors are only delaying their projects, such as the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway project, a joint venture between Indonesian and Chinese railway companies.Contrary to the trend in FDI, domestic investment, which made up about 53 percent of total investment in the first quarter, rose by 9.5 percent quarter-on-quarter to Rp 112.7 trillion during the January to March period.Total investment, mostly channeled to projects in the transportation, warehouse, telecommunications, metal and energy sectors, created 303,085 jobs between January and March. It marked an 8 percent decline from the number of jobs created in the last three months of 2019.Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) researcher Andry Satrio said the agency’s data “had yet to reveal the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on investment”. According to him, the significant impact would be seen in the second quarter of this year.“I think the growth of FDI and domestic investment will likely fall in the next quarter,” Andry told The Jakarta Post via text message on Monday. “We are relying on domestic investment right now, but the BKPM should prevent an FDI outflow from Indonesia.”Most foreign and domestic funds were invested in projects in East Java, followed by West Java, Jakarta, Central Java and Riau. With the national epicenter of the outbreak located in the first three provinces, investment was expected to hit hard as a result of the emergency measures to contain the virus.Perbanas Institute economist Piter Abdullah said investment was channeled mostly to Java-based projects because of inadequate infrastructure outside the island. The government was still developing toll roads across the country to support logistics.“With better infrastructure outside Java island, the pattern of investment in the country will shift and create a balance between investment on and outside the island,” Piter told the Post on Monday. “It is not easy to shift the center of economic growth outside Java Island.”Topics : Indonesia’s total investment realization slightly increased in the first quarter of this year, but the global economic woes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic will likely reverse the investment trend in the rest of the year.The Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) reported that the country’s investment grew by 1.2 percent to Rp 210.7 trillion (US$13.5 billion) in the first three months of the year from the figures recorded in the November to December period in 2019.Although it suggested little impact from the coronavirus pandemic, the data might not tell the true story as foreign investment realization began to fall during the January to March period. Indonesia’s foreign direct investment (FDI), which accounted for 46.5 percent of total investment, fell by 7 percent to Rp 98 trillion in the January to March period from the fourth quarter of 2019.Singapore, which recently saw a worsening trend in its number of COVID-19 cases, was Indonesia’s top source of investment with US$2.7 million, contributing 40 percent to total FDI. It was followed by China, which was starting to reopen its economy, with US$1.3 million, contributing 18.9 percent to total FDI.“The COVID-19 pandemic first affected investment in mid-March, when FDI started declining,” Bahlil said in an online briefing on Monday.Bahlil said the projected investment in the next three months might be lower than Rp 150 trillion even if the pandemic faded in May. In the worse-case scenario, the projected investment this year could reach Rp 817 trillion, 7 percent below the target.
German government says no to guarantees, insurance exemption
The government has rejected proposals to introduce guarantees to new pension vehicles to be created under the “Betriebsrentenstärkungsgesetz” (BRSG).On 10 February the smaller chamber of the German parliament, the Bundesrat, had recommended amendments to the draft law the government had presented in November. The parliamentary body wanted to allow guarantees to be offered in the new vehicles which the government had intended as pure defined contribution (DC) plans.In a response to the Bundesrat’s suggestion the government clarified in a written statement that it did not want guarantees: “The pure DC plans are intended as an additional offer for those employer and employee representatives who do not see guarantees as protection but as a limitation to designing a pension plan or a hurdle for entering into an agreement on occupational pensions.”Further, allowing guarantees in these new plans would give insurers a competitive advantage in the market, it was reasoned. The government added: “Combining pure defined contribution plans with a non-guarantee rule is therefore only a next step.”The government emphasised that all those who wanted to have guarantees in their pension plans could still choose an existing vehicle.However, the final decision will lie with the larger chamber of the German parliament, the Bundestag, which is set to hold the first reading of the BRSG draft on 10 March.The government also rejected proposals by the smaller chamber on exempting parts of the contributions to occupational pension plans from health insurance payments.The Bundesrat wanted to exempt pension payments during retirement based on employer contributions from health insurance.But the government calculated that this would lower inflows into the state health insurance system by €2.5bn annually, and declined the proposal.Regarding other more technical proposals by the Bundesrat, the government promised to look into them.As reported by IPE, the German federation of company pension plans had also rejected a proposal to allow guarantees in the new pension plans.
Your Guy Has A Female Best Friend: Are You Okay With It?.
LifestyleRelationships Your Guy Has A Female Best Friend: Are You Okay With It?. by: – May 30, 2011 Share Share Tweet Share
Sharing is caring! 37 Views no discussions by Kim Kuhteubl, www.Single-Woman.TVIt’s the same old question, can men and women really be friends?I once knew a couple who had trouble around the issue of his female best friend. He had been friends with her since they were 15, and the girlfriend was just over a year into her relationship with him. The best friend started to become jealous of his new relationship. The girlfriend was jealous of his friendship but when push came to shove, the guy told his girlfriend he was not willing to give up his female best friend. That is, until he got married.Years later, when the same guy married the girlfriend, and when his now wife got pregnant – and hormone crazed — she made sure his best friend was kicked to the curb. In fact, many of the female friends of said guy that she used to tolerate were replaced with safe couples – myself included.Although it’s pretty sad, I can’t say I blame her.I’m always miffed by married men who have female best friends. Isn’t that who your wife is supposed to be? I think having someone of the opposite sex to lean on – unless it’s a sibling — is an unnecessary temptation and a potential leak of intimacy between partners. My friend J – a man married for almost two decades – says that it’s “a lot of pressure on a relationship for a woman to be everything to a man.” He has many female friends. I don’t know his wife, so I can’t speak to her position on the matter, but maybe that’s why they’ve been married so long; she has space to be who she needs to be?
Batesville Dentist Highlighted In Dental Magazine
Dr. Bradley Broughton practices dentistry at Batesville Dental.BATESVILLE – National dental magazine, Incisal Edge, published an article naming the top 40 dentists age 40 and under, and it features a local dentist.Dr. Bradley Broughton practices dentistry at Batesville Dental. He is one of 40 dentists nationwide selected and traveled to New York City for a photo shoot for the publication.Dr. Broughton is a fourth-generation dentist as his great-grandfather opened an office in Cincinnati. The report details how Broughton works alongside his wife and mother, and still treats patients that travel from Cincinnati.The 35-year-old notes that he enjoys general dentistry, such as doing fillings and cleanings, as well as staying in touch with returning patients.Broughton says in the article, he has received national and regional awards for showing Arabian horses.He was national champion in 1994 and reserve national champion in 1997 at the Arabian Horse Association National Championships in Oklahoma City in show hack.Broughton says the biggest challenge he dealt with in dentistry was opening his own practice. He later met his wife, Dawn, in the office and they married in 2010. She remained there working as a dental assistant.
Fear Factory opens 2018 season Friday
Photo: Fear FactoryBatesville, In. — Southeastern Indiana’s scariest haunted house, Fear Factory opens the 2018 Halloween season on Friday, October 5. The haunted attraction will be open every Friday and Saturday from 7 to 10 p.m.The Haunted Tour is $10, up to five people in the “Escape Room” for three to five minutes and the “Lights On Tour” will be Saturday, October 21 and the 7th & 8th Grade dance sponsored by STAAND and Cierra’s Club will be Saturday, October 6 admission is $10.Save 10-percent with your ticket stub at the Big Four Café, Ison’s Family Pizza and Batesville Skyline Chili.
Big payday for IMCA Modifieds at March 3 Pahrump special
PAHRUMP, Nev. – Three thousand dollars is the winner’s share when IMCA Modifieds travel to Pahrump Valley Speedway for the Saturday, March 3 Stormin’ Mormon Memorial.The event is held in honor of Ray Wulfenstein, a long-time driver from Pahrump nicknamed the Stormin’ Mormon, who died in January of 2017.A minimum of $300 will be paid to start the 40-lap Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot qualifier. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, Larry Shaw Race Cars Western Region and IMCA Nevada State points will be awarded.Pit gates open at noon and the grandstand opens at 4 p.m. Hot laps are at 4:30 p.m. and racing starts shortly after 5 p.m.Entry fee is $45 and pit passes are $25. Grandstand admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors 55 and over, $6 for kids ages 6-14 and free for ages five and under.Questions can be directed to promoter Chad Broadhead at 702 328-8101, event coordinator Bryan Wulfenstein at 775 209-3638 or Modified race director Leland Hibdon at 775 209-6896.“Both Bryan and Leland have raced IMCA Modifieds. The sanctioning of this event actually comes about as a result of a conversation we had at the Duel In The Desert,” said IMCA President Brett Root, noting the Stormin’ Mormon comes on the heels of a midweek special for the division at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. “We’ll do everything we can to make this a successful and annual event for our Western Region drivers.”Also on the race day card at Pahrump is the $1,000 to win Sam Stringer Super Stock Memorial. Stringer’s on-track career included a stint in the sanctioned Modified division.
Duke Energy cautions customers to guard against scammers during pandemic
Statewide— Duke Energy is warning its customers to be on guard against phone calls from scammers who are demanding that utility customers pay their electric bill immediately or risk having their electric service disconnected within the hour.Typically, the customer receives an unsolicited phone call—sometimes an automated call– from an individual who falsely claims to be a Duke Energy representative demanding immediate payment, usually in the form of a prepaid debit card. Scammers have even duplicated the Duke Energy upfront Interactive Voice Response system, so when customers call back phone numbers provided by the scammer, it sounds like a legitimate Duke Energy phone number. Some of these criminals also use caller-ID spoofing to replicate a utility’s customer service number.Red flags for scam activityThe caller becomes angry and tells the customer his or her account is past due, and service will be disconnected if a large payment isn’t made – usually within the hour.The caller instructs the customer to purchase a pre-paid debit or credit card – widely available at retail stores – then call him or her back to supposedly make a payment to Duke Energy.The scammer asks the customer for the prepaid card’s receipt number and PIN number, which grants instant access to the card’s funds.The customer has received no other notice from Duke Energy that an account is overdue.How to protect yourselfDuke Energy never asks or requires a customer with a delinquent account to purchase a prepaid debit card – or iTunes card — to avoid disconnection.Customers can make payments online, by phone, automatic bank draft, or mail.Customers with delinquent accounts receive advance disconnection notification with the regular monthly billing – never a single notification one hour before disconnection.Customers who suspect or experience fraud or feel threatened during contact with one of these thieves, should contact local law enforcement authorities and then the Duke Energy Indiana phone number listed on their bill (800.521.2232). Never dial the phone number the scammers provide.Customers can get more scam and fraud prevention information at Duke Energy’s Fraud and Scams web page by clicking here.
PBC Mayor Discusses Possible Shutdown, as Gov. DeSantis Offers Reassurance
Meanwhile, Gov. Ron DeSantis held a news conference Saturday afternoon at Flagler Hospital in St. Augustine.He announced that 30,000 additional vials of the drug Remdesivir will be delivered to Florida hospitals within the next 48 to 72 hours.Those vials will help treat between 5,000 and 6,000 coronavirus patients, according to the governor.DeSantis asked those who have already recovered from the virus and are positive for the antibodies to consider donating blood.“Another type of treatment that is also proven to have a positive impact is the use of convalescent plasma,” he said. “So this is people donate blood who have the antibodies for COVID-19 and then that can be used as a treatment for patients who are suffering under the illness.”The governor also took the opportunity to reassure parents who are concerned about sending their children back to classrooms while Florida continues to fight the coronavirus.“I can tell you having dealt with this every day since February and looked at the data in the U.S., Florida, across the world, and as a father of three young kids, I do not fear this virus’ effect on my kids,” DeSantis said.He continued, “I think the risk is incredibly low. I fear way more things in terms of their health and safety, but I would not have any problem having them in school if they were — they’re not school age — but if they were I would absolutely do that and I think it would be safe for them.”According to the latest numbers from the Florida Department of Health, there are 25,785 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Palm Beach County as of Sunday morning, including 679 deaths. Kerner said rolling back those economic regulations would be a policy decision to be made by the entire Board of County Commissioners.“I want to remind everybody that we’re not there yet because of your great work,” Kerner said.The mayor emphasized that a countywide mask mandate remains in effect, requiring everyone to wear face coverings in public places in Palm Beach County where social distancing is not possible or is not being practiced.WATCH NEWS CONFERENCE: Palm Beach County remains in Phase One of Florida’s reopening plan, meaning that restaurants, retail stores, fitness centers and gyms, as well as museums and libraries, may operate at 50 percent capacity indoors.
Palm Beach County’s top official says “nothing is off the table” in terms of potentially shutting down the local economy again in order to slow the spread of the coronavirus.During a news conference on Friday afternoon, Mayor Dave Kerner said such a major decision will be based on the COVID-19 positivity rate in the county.“If the positivity rates start to go up precipitously as they have in other communities, I know where those positivity rates lead us, and I won’t hesitate for a moment to do what needs to be done to keep the public safety and health,” Kerner said.The COVID-19 positivity rate in Palm Beach County as of Friday was 12 percent, according to Kerner, an increase from 9.3 percent from three weeks ago.“If the conduct and the metrics and the data indicate that we’re headed in a bad place, then we probably, absolutely would close the economy down,” Kerner said.
Arkansas looks for home win vs Mizzou
Associated Press SAVVY SENIORS: Arkansas’ Mason Jones, Jimmy Whitt Jr. and Adrio Bailey have collectively accounted for 56 percent of the team’s scoring this season, including 65 percent of all Razorbacks points over the last five games.OFFENSIVE THREAT: Xavier Pinson has either made or assisted on 44 percent of all Missouri field goals over the last three games. Pinson has accounted for 23 field goals and 12 assists in those games.WINLESS WHEN: Missouri is 0-9 when scoring fewer than 60 points and 13-4 when scoring at least 60.COLD SPELLS: Missouri has dropped its last seven road games, scoring 58.9 points and allowing 75.9 points during those contests. Arkansas has lost its last three home games, scoring an average of 76.7 points while giving up 78.7.DID YOU KNOW: The Arkansas defense has forced opponents into turnovers on an impressive 23.4 percent of all possessions, which is the 23rd-highest rate in the country. The Missouri offense has turned the ball over on 21.2 percent of its possessions (ranked 308th among Division I teams). February 20, 2020 Share This StoryFacebookTwitteremailPrintLinkedinRedditMissouri (13-13, 5-8) vs. Arkansas (16-10, 4-9)Bud Walton Arena, Fayetteville, Arkansas; Saturday, 1 p.m. ESTBOTTOM LINE: Arkansas looks for its sixth straight win over Missouri at Bud Walton Arena. The last victory for the Tigers at Arkansas was a 75-71 win on Jan. 28, 2014.
Arkansas looks for home win vs Mizzou ___For more AP college basketball coverage: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and http://twitter.com/AP_Top25___This was generated by Automated Insights, http://www.automatedinsights.com/ap, using data from STATS LLC, https://www.stats.com